The idea behind this comes from the spider’s web. In fact, the Ojibwe word they use for dreamcatcher literally means “spider.” A spider’s web catches prey or anything that can harm them, and the Native American people believed that the dream catcher would work the same way with nightmares.

However, some tribes also consider the dreamcatcher a symbol of unity among the various Indigenous Nations, and a general symbol of identification with Native American or First Nations cultures.